Life's Funny That Way Sometime's
by Live laugh write and love
Summary: It's funny how one decision can change your whole life, it's funny because that's what this one girl did to Elena's. In the time it took her to walk into the free clinic Elena's life was no longer in her own hands, it was in someone else's entirely. AU
1. Prologue

_**Life's funny that way sometimes. **_

_**Prologue. **_

_** They were friends because they had to be, Elena took care of the young girl because she had too, and yes because she wanted to. But she couldn't tell the broken girl with the swollen belly that she cared for her, it would only upset her further. She had given everything up for this baby, and even after all of that, she was doing Elena a favor. **_

_** "Are you sure you don't need anything?" Elena asked once more while slipping on her coat. It was her first date since she left Stefan, and Elena would be lying if she said she wasn't nervous. The girl's laughter filled the apartment with a joyous sprit Elena missed.**_

_** "Elena go have fun with Damon, I'm fine. Pregnant but fine." The girl moved her hand in a circular motion on her stomach as if trying to sooth the baby. Elena smiled, nodded, and then laughed.**_

_** "I thought I was supposed to be taking care of you," The girl stopped moving her hand to look up at Elena. Her green eye's so intense Elena could hardly hold her gaze.**_

_** "Don't stop living your life Elena. We take care of each other."**_

_** "No I take care of you." The girl's green eyes pooled with tears as she smiled at Elena. Elena smiled back. This was her life now, and she wouldn't change it for the world. **_

Authors note:

Alright tell me what you think, and if it goes well, I'll have the first chapter up by tonight


	2. Elena

_**Okay for this story's purposes the ages of some of the characters have changed. For example Jenna's only twelve years older than Elena.**_

_**Elena: age 29**_

_**Stefan: age 31**_

_**Jenna: age 42**_

_**Alaric: Age 44**_

_**Damon: age 33**_

_**Klaus: age 17**_

_**Rebekah: Age 14**_

_**Kol: age 16**_

_**Henrick: age 12 (He's alive in this story)**_

_**Elijah: age 19**_

_**Finn: age 21**_

_**The older brother who's dead on the show: Dexter: age 24**_

_**Caroline: Age 28**_

_**Faya Carnegie: age 16**_

_**Patricia Carnegie: 36**_

_**Mikael: Age 50**_

_**Esther: age 49**_

Chapter one

Elena

Elena Gilbert was a lot of things, but a lair wasn't one of them. Or at least that's what she told herself when her husband of six years walked in just two hours ago and accused her of sleeping with his older brother, she expected him to believe her when she told him she didn't. Elena had told Stefan over and over that she would never dream of sleeping with another man, that she had never cheated, and that she only loved him. That wasn't enough to stop the shell of her husband from smacking her across her left cheek bone.

Sure hers and Stefan's relationship hadn't always been rosy and perfect, but she loved him. She just wished he saw that fact too. There was nothing in this world she loved more than Stefan Salvatore, and she'd give anything for him to see that.

Elena sighed shaking her head slightly causing her stick straight hair to fall out of her high ponytail and around her face. She was done, done with this apartment, and done with this life. Hell until two hours ago she wasn't even aware that Stefan even had a brother. Elena shoved another pair of jeans into her suitcase; she was furiously wiping away her tears, "Stupid Stefan, stupid job, stupid house! All of this was a huge waste of my time!" Elena hissed biting back more tears, she had nowhere else to go, and she had no one in this overly large city to count on.

Sure she had acquired a couple friends from her job and she even managed to be able to stand most of her neighbors. It was just that this place was never supposed to be home; according to Stefan it was temporary until they got enough money to buy a family home. Here lately Elena was sure that day would never come.

Six years ago Elena happily- or as happily as she could at the time moved with Stefan to New York, to start a new life, and to gain something she lost when her parents died, love. But now, when she looked back at the last six years of her life, she realized she wasn't in love, or even happy with Stefan. He was a withdrawn and distant man, a shell of who he pretended to be out in public. But Elena knew better, as soon as they would return to their tiny one bedroom house Stefan would shut down and return to his bourbon, never even looking at her.

They had their happy moments back in Mystic Falls, back when her parents were alive, back when Stefan hadn't accidently killed a man in a car crash back when he was twenty. But he did, and that guilt nearly killed him, and her. It wasn't until Elena told him she was in love with him for the first time at his twenty-first birthday did she realize what that man's death had done to him. It was like the Stefan she loved was gone, and the ghost of who he was remained. He hadn't told her he loved her since.

Elena zipped her suitcase up and pulled it off the crappy bed she had slept in alone for that last six years, she took the wedding ring off her finger and tossed it next to Stefan's favorite alcohol and stomped out of the house. Once that warm spring hair hit Elena's face she felt instantly better, Stefan would come home to a cold house, and maybe just maybe he'd miss her.

Elena sighed as she plopped herself down in the going from yellow to green grass. Her long legs curled underneath her. 'What now?' she thought. She had nowhere to go, a slightly upset stomach, and a horrible headache, and yet all she wanted to do was unpack her bags and go crawl back in the crappy bed and wait for Stefan to come home and tell her how sorry he was for hitting her, and be excited when he took her to her favorite restaurant and let her pick a movie for the two of them to see together, and he'd tell her she meant everything in the whole world to him. And no matter how hard her heart and brain screamed at her to stop believing him, she would, and still kind of, just maybe did.

"Get it together Elena," She told herself, determined to make a better life for her. Elena stood and with confidence she didn't know she had anymore walked to her car. A new air swirled around her; it was like something became clearer in the warm spring wind.

Elena got in her car and put it in drive, she was nervous to say the least, with nowhere to go and all. The more she thought about it, she did have somewhere to go, her Aunt Jenna still lived in Mystic Falls, and so did her best friend Caroline Forbes. She could always return home, her Aunt had called every night for two years after Elena first left, it was Elena never had the energy after dealing with her low paying job all day, and dealing with Stefan's drunken slurs all afternoon to talk to her Aunt.

Never once had Elena thought she'd miss Stefan, but the further she got away from him, the more she missed him. She didn't care if he was abusive and a terrible husband, or potential if she was pregnant, he'd be a terrible father. All she knew was at one point and time, she loved him, and for the longest time that was enough. Elena sighed and rubbed her large brown eyes with her long slender fingers. She glanced up making sure the stoplight was in fact still red and it was.

It was hard changing the things in your life you had become so accustom to, hell it was hard for her to even move here with Stefan, to leave her family and friends behind. She should just go back to Stefan, lie to him, tell him how sorry she was for sleeping with his older brother, and beg for him to take her back. "Elena Salvatore-Gilbert, you are nearly thirty years old with the chance of a baby on the way, do you really think thinking like this is doing you any good?" She asked herself as the red light turned green. She shook her head as she pressed her grey converse covered shoe to her as petal. Elena didn't even realize where she was going until the sun had long gone said its goodbyes and the moon had crossed the middle of the sky. She hadn't even realized what she was doing, or where she was until her stomach let out a usually loud growl that echoed through her empty red slug bug.

Sighing Elena pulls off the high way and into a tiny diner's parking lot. She was hungry, and she was tired. Her muscles are sore and she's pretty sure that if she didn't lie down soon she was going to pass out at the wheel and possibly kill her and her unborn child.

Elena plopped down in a red booth and let her head fall to the table. "Can I get you anything sweetie?" A kind old waitress asked with a sweet smile. Elena smiled and nodded.

"I'd like a chocolate milk shake, a large fry, along with the biggest cheese burger you got," The elder woman laughs slightly while jotting down Elena's large order. The elderly walked away and shortly returned with a glass of water, and when Elena opened her mouth to ask why, the old woman just shook her head. Elena smiled her thanks and sipped on the water, the woman must have seen something because Elena's stomach flipped when the water rushed into its empty cabins. Luckily when her food arrived Elena had finished the water, filling her empty stomach enough that way she could eat and not get sick.

Once Elena finished eating and paid for her food she walked out of the diner satisfied. While rubbing her eyes for the billionth time that night she stretched her arms and dangled her car keys in her hand. She checked her iPhone's GPS system and smiled. She was forty minutes outside of Virginia and then it was another hour until she reached Mystic Falls. Elena nodded her head determined to make it before midnight.

It was late, Elena knew this, but when she pulled up to her old childhood home, with all the lights on she couldn't help but let out the breath she didn't know she had been holding. Elena unbuckled her seat belt, shut her car off, and then sat there. Staring at the home she left behind so many years ago. Tears pooled in Elena's eyes at home much she hurt everyone she cared about when she left. She not only left her very pregnant Aunt with her Uncle Alaric but she also left her teenage brother with a serious drug problem. Ignoring the stinging tears in her eyes she opened the car door and started up the steps, she didn't bother closing the car door just in case.

Elena quickly held her breath as she listened at the front door, she could hear laughter along with a little kid screaming a song on the top of their lungs. Elena smiled as she knocked on the front door. The sounds coming from inside the house stopped. Elena could hear the sound of feet shuffling and Alaric opened the door.

"Elena?" he asked as he stepped to the side fo the door to let Jenna look out. Jenna was round faced with a flat stomach, unlike the last time Elena saw her.

"Elena, oh my God, what on earth are you doing here?" Jenna asked pulling the nearly crying girl into her arms.

"Oh Jenna I've messed up, I never should have left." She sobbed into her aunt's shoulder as Alaric went out and gather her one bag out of her car. Once he returned and shut the door a voice broke the silence.

"Mommy who dat?" the little boy asked with large brown eyes, he had a hand shoved in his mouth and his bear footie pajamas on and a large dinosaur handing from his hand, the one that wasn't in his mouth. Jenna laughed and pulled away from Elena and looked at her child.

"This is your cousin Elena," the little blond hair brown eyed boy walked over to Elena dropping his dinosaur in the process and wrapped his arms around her leg.

"Ewena," he rubs his eyes with one hand. Elena instantly swoops the sleepy kid up in her arms while giving his cheek a pinch. Jenna smiled quickly and heads upstairs to the boy's room. Elena smiles as she follows Jenna, her smile widened as she enters Jeremy's old room that was now the nearly asleep little boys.

"He's beautiful Jenna," Elena cooed as she tucked him into bed and kissed his forehead.

"Thanks, his name is Max," Jenna kissed Elena's forehead as they both stood staring at the small boy.

"I wish you would have stayed to see him come into this world, but we can talk about it in the morning. Your room is still where it's always been Elena; I waited for six years for you to return to it." Jenna kissed Elena on the head as she rested her hand on her shoulder, and then walked out of the room, leaving Elena standing there feeling useless.

Elena kissed the sleeping boy on the head and quickly exited the room. She walks across the hall to her room and pauses at the door. So many emotions runs through her mind as her hand rests on the door handle. She's almost scared to open the door, to face the person she used to be. Sucking in a large amount of air Elena pushed her door open, inside was her room. The one place she wished she was when she was in hers and Stefan's cold and lonely apartment each night. Elena quickly pulled her jeans off and crawled over the soft purple comforter.

Her body instantly relaxed as she pushed her long legs underneath her blankets, warmth and love flooded Elena's tired body. Sighing happily she rested her hand on her stomach as she drifted off to sleep thinking about the life the baby and her would live.

When Elena woke up to the sounds of little feet running down the hall and opening up her door she nearly got out of bed, swooped the little boy up and did a happy dance. But instead she smiled as he climbed into her bed, she pretended to be asleep as he pressed his cold fingers to her cheek.

"Ewena, Ewena, EWENA!" the little boy giggled as she reached out and pulled him close to her, she tickled his sides and he screamed out in joy. His laughter filled the room and it mixed with hers. Elena hopped her baby would grow up to be like Max.

"Is your mommy awake?" Elena asked as she let the little boy calm down. He shook his head yes as he smiled a toothy smile at her.

"Making breakfast in the kitchen," Elena smiled as he crawled out of her bed and ran out of the room. Elena smiled and moved to find comfortable pants. Once she was dressed her left her childhood room and headed to the kitchen. The smell of pancakes filled her nose and she smiled even wider.

"Aunt Jenna," Elena stated as she entered the room, Jenna handed her a large cup of coffee, with milk and sugar just like Elena liked it. Jenna smiled and nodded to the stool in front of the stove.

"You missy have a lot to explain to me, but for now I want you to eat this," Jenna placed seven pancakes and three strips of bacon in front of Elena smiled before she dug into her meal.

After a two hour clean up session after breakfast that involved a pirate battle with Max Elena sat down with Jenna outside with the warm sun shining on her skin. The sun's rays warmed Elena's skin as she sat next to her Aunt.

"So what brings you back?" Jenna asked slightly, her nose crinkled the same way Elena's mothers used to.

Elena sighed as she reached down and tangled her fingers in the grass. She pulled handful after handful up and placed it on a spot that didn't seem to have as much grass growing. "It was Stefan that drove me to leave Mystic Falls, and it was Stefan the drove me away from New York." Elena stated glancing at her Aunt.

Jenna deiced when she asked Elena what happened she would listen, and she wouldn't judge. But it was the way Elena said Stefan's name that made her narrow her eyes off in the distance. Jenna remembers when Stefan was a happy football playing star. When his whole life revolved around Elena and his family, but the Stefan that Elena left with six years ago, didn't deserve her.

"I wanted the Stefan I met when I was fifteen Jenna, I wanted him so bad that I let who he was be masked by that want," Elena's eyes filled with tears, she wasn't ready to talk to Stefan. "Aunt Jenna can we please talk about this at another time?" Jenna looked skeptical at her older 'sisters' daughter.

"Okay Elena, I'll let it go for now." Elena smiled almost excited for the subject change. "But answer me with Elena, how long until Stefan drags you back?" Jenna nearly hissed Stefan's name. Elena smiled a sad smile and shook her head no while rubbing her hand on her flat stomach.

"Never. I think I'm pregnant and Stefan could never be the man I want him no need him to be." Jenna frowned at Elena for a second before her face broken into a grin.

"You think you're pregnant?" Jenna squealed as Elena nodded her head eargerly.

"I do, I really think so. God I hope so." Elena looked away quickly; she looked out in the kid friendly backyard, toys and play things covered the ground. It made Elena smile at the thought of having this one day. But then the thought of not being pregnant nearly caused her to cry. "What if I'm not pregnant Jenna?" Elena asked eyes filled with tears. Jenna titled her head to the side watching her niece. It wasn't very often that Elena looked at her like that. Like she was five years old again screaming for her mom to come and hug her because she had a nightmare.

Jenna leaned over at wrapped the nearly thirty year old woman in her arms. She hadn't been a mother long, but she knew what to do in situations like these. As Elena cried on Jenna's shoulder, Jenna mentally made a list of everything Elena would need if she was pregnant. And the first thing on that list was a trip to the free clinic. "Elena why don't you go lie down? I'll make a call to doctor Hendricks? He took a look at me when I was pregnant. Alright?" Elena nodded and snuffled she smiled weakly at her aunt while she pushed herself up and walked back into the house.

Jenna was afraid Elena's fears of not being pregnant might just be the reality Elena's about to face.


End file.
